Customizable in-vehicle gaming system

ABSTRACT

An in-vehicle gaming system may be played by a driver alone, or simultaneously or individually by a driver and/or one or more other users. The in-vehicle gaming system may be activated or controlled by, for example, touch, voice, or gesture. Gameplay is dynamically adjusted based at least in part on environmental factors such that the driver is not distracted from driving the vehicle. Game content is generated based at least in part on environmental factors and user data.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) to U.S.Provisional Patent Application No. 61/724,239, entitled “IN-VEHICLEGAMING SYSTEM” and filed on Nov. 8, 2012. The disclosure of thisprovisional application is hereby incorporated by reference in itsentirety.

BACKGROUND

In-vehicle entertainment has traditionally been provided by the radio.The driver and, if present, passengers in the vehicle usually select aradio station, and then passively listen to the audio, be it music ortalk. Other audio entertainment is also available, including cassettetapes, CDs, audiobooks, portable electronic music players. In each case,the vehicle occupants passively consume the content presented to themaurally.

More recently, in-vehicle entertainment systems provide the opportunityfor vehicle passengers to watch video, such as movies or TV programs, onembedded in-vehicle displays. Such an option is not typically availableto the driver of the vehicle due to the likelihood of distraction. Andagain, such entertainment options consist of the vehicle occupantspassively consuming the content of the movie or TV program.

More advanced entertainment systems may include gaming consoles orcomputers. These systems give the vehicle passengers the opportunity toengage in, for example, video games while traveling to a destination.Again, however, such systems are not typically available to the driverof the vehicle because of the concern that such a game system could bedistracting to the driver.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing aspects and many of the attendant advantages will becomemore readily appreciated as the same become better understood byreference to the following detailed description, when taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is an example of users interacting with an in-vehicle gamingsystem, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an illustrative network environment inwhich an in-vehicle gaming system may operate.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an illustrative content server.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of another illustrative networkenvironment in which an in-vehicle gaming system may operate.

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram depicting illustrative gameplay adjustmentstates.

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram depicting an illustrative routine for adjustinggameplay states.

FIG. 7 is a pictorial diagram depicting an example user interface for anin-vehicle gaming system.

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram depicting an illustrative routine forgenerating gameplay data.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Overview of the Present Disclosure

Player-System Interaction

Generally described, aspects of the present disclosure are directed toan in-vehicle gaming system that may be played by a driver or operatoralone, or simultaneously or individually by a driver and/or one or morepassengers in a vehicle. The in-vehicle gaming system may be activatedor controlled by, for example, touch, voice, or gesture. For instance,in one embodiment, the in-vehicle game may be a trivia game displayed onan embedded display, such as an in-vehicle navigation system or otherembedded display, and a user may interact with the in-vehicle game bytouching the display to select answers to questions. In anotherembodiment, the in-vehicle game may be voice based/controlled, such thatthe user interacts with the in-vehicle game by listening and/orspeaking. In the trivia game example, questions may be presented to theuser or player as text or pictures on the display, or as sounds, such asspoken words, through a vehicle audio system. In an embodiment, the userof the in-vehicle gaming system interacts with the in-vehicle gamethrough a portable computing device not attached to or embedded in thevehicle, such as a mobile phone or smartphone. For purposes of thepresent disclosure, “user” may be used to refer to a driver or operatorof the vehicle, or a passenger of the vehicle, who is participating inthe in-vehicle game.

FIG. 1 shows an example of users interacting with an in-vehicle gamingsystem 100 and as will be described in further detail below. In theexample, the users include a driver 104 and a passenger 106 who aretraveling in a vehicle 102. The in-vehicle gaming system is displaying atrivia question on an in-vehicle display 108. The passenger 106 isanswering the question vocally with a spoken answer 110. In the exampleof users interacting with an in-vehicle gaming system 100, the questionmay also have been presented through the vehicle audio system inaddition to being displayed on the in-vehicle display 108, and eitherthe driver 104 or the passenger 106 may have provided an answer to thetrivia question by selecting an answer from the in-vehicle display 108(e.g., by touching the displaying or using another user input device).

System Communication

As the user interacts with the in-vehicle gaming system, the in-vehiclegaming system may generate game content, for example, trivia questions.In an embodiment, the in-vehicle gaming system is embedded and maycommunicate via a wireless network with a content server locatedremotely from the vehicle. In this embodiment, the game content may bestored in a content data store, from which the content server draws thecontent, and then transmits that content via the wireless network to thein-vehicle gaming system with which the vehicle is equipped. The contentmay then be presented to the user via the embedded display 108. Inanother embodiment, game content is generated and stored locally, in,for example, by the in-vehicle gaming system. In another embodiment, thedriver and/or passengers interact with the in-vehicle gaming systemusing their portable computing devices, such as smartphones, whichcommunicate wirelessly (e.g., via short-wavelength radio transmission)with the in-vehicle gaming system. In another embodiment, the driver'sand/or passengers' portable devices communicate directly with a remotecontent or game server rather than or in addition to the embedded,in-vehicle gaming system.

Dynamic Driver Distraction Reduction

In an embodiment, the in-vehicle gaming system may be played by a singleuser, for example a driver of a car. As the driver plays the in-vehiclegame, the gameplay may be dynamically adjusted or modified to accountfor the distraction of the driver. Accordingly, gameplay may bedynamically modified in order to reduce driver distraction and improvesafety. In this regard the in-vehicle gaming system may monitor one ormore environmental factors as the driver uses the in-vehicle gamingsystem to assess driver distraction. These factors may include, forexample, the driver's driving behavior, passengers in the vehicle andtheir locations and actions, the speed, irregular motion and location ofthe vehicle, the environment surrounding the vehicle, and the weather,among others.

In this embodiment, the driver or operator may begin playing the game inthe normal gameplay state, but the gameplay state may be modified toreduce driver distraction. Modifications to the gameplay state mayinclude changing the focus of the game, changing the game difficulty,and reducing the volume of the game, among other things. For instance,in the trivia game example, as a user answers questions, the content ofeach subsequent question may be made easier or more difficult. Thein-vehicle gaming system may also completely interrupt gameplay, or endthe game, in response to the mentioned environmental factors to reducedriver distraction.

User Identification

In an embodiment, the in-vehicle gaming system may identify a user basedon characteristics associated with the user. For example, one or moreusers in the vehicle may be identified by his or her position in thevehicle, by the way his or her seat is adjusted, by his or her height,by his or her weight, through facial recognition or voice recognition,or through communication with the user's mobile phone, key orsmartphone, among other things.

Content Customization

Additionally, in an embodiment, the content of the in-vehicle game maybe dynamically generated or adjusted by the in-vehicle gaming systembased on the identity of the users in the vehicle. Once a user isidentified by the in-vehicle gaming system, the characteristics of thatuser may form the basis for the content of the in-vehicle game. Suchcharacteristics may include, for example, the user's age or education,the user's interests, or the content that the player owns, such asbooks, audiobooks, movies, or music, among other things. Thus, in thetrivia game example, the trivia questions may be drawn from informationor themes of the content the user owns or has accessed. In anotherexample, the difficulty level of the content may be adjusted based onthe user's characteristics. If, for example, the user answers a numberof difficult questions wrong, the questions may be adjusted to be of atype that are generally easier to answer.

An Embodiment of the Present Disclosure as Used by Multiple People inthe Same Vehicle

In an embodiment, the in-vehicle gaming system may be played by multiplepeople in the same vehicle simultaneously. As described above, users ofthe in-vehicle gaming system may interact with the system through touch,voice, or gesture, among other things. The gameplay may be presented tothe users in a single display, such as a vehicle embedded display, oreach user may have their own display, such as the display associatedwith an in-vehicle entertainment system, or a smartphone. Alternatively,users may interact with the system through audio, either combinedthrough the vehicle audio system, or individually through, for example,individual headphones and microphones. The in-vehicle gaming system maydistinguish between users to receive voice commands or answers fromspecific users, among other things.

As described above with respect to a single player, the gameplay may bedynamically adjusted or modified to account for the distraction of thedriver. In one example, the driver's participation in the gameplay maybe limited if the in-vehicle gaming system determines that the driver isdistracted. For example, if the driver is in control of the gameplay asthe designated answerer of the trivia questions being presented to theusers, the control of the gameplay may be transferred to another userother than the driver.

In an embodiment, the content of the in-vehicle game may be dynamicallygenerated or adjusted by the in-vehicle gaming system based on theidentities of the group of users in the vehicle. The characteristics ofthe users, as described above, may be used as the basis of the gamecontent themes or questions, among other things. In one example, thein-vehicle gaming system determines what content is similar among thegroup of users. For example, if all of the users have bought aparticular movie (as identified by analyzing each user's purchasehistory), the content of the in-vehicle game may be drawn directly fromthe movie. Thus, in the trivia game example, the trivia questions wouldbe about the movie or the characters in the movie, and would therebyapply to the whole group. In another example, if all the users have acommon interest, for example, they have all bought sports-related books,the content of the in-vehicle game may relate to that common interest,here, sports. Thus, in the trivia games example, the trivia questionswould have a sports theme, and would be sports-related, and wouldthereby apply to the whole group. In other examples, the in-vehicle gamemay determine the appropriate content based upon age, education,language, location, interest and other criteria associated with thegroup of users.

An Embodiment of the Present Disclosure as Used by Multiple People inMultiple Vehicles

In an embodiment, the in-vehicle gaming system may be used by multiplepeople in different vehicles simultaneously. Each vehicle may have oneor more users/players that are interacting with the in-vehicle gamingsystem. In this embodiment, game content for each of the individualvehicles may be provided by separate in-vehicle devices, or by a centralcontent server. Communications between vehicles, or individual userdevices, may be facilitated by communication links/networks, such assmartphones, that may be connected directly from vehicle to vehicle, orthrough the central content or game server. Communications amongvehicles may include audio and/or video, among other things. In thisway, users in multiple vehicles may simultaneously participate in thesame game.

The in-vehicle gaming system may, in various embodiments, include gamesof different types, such as, for example, trivia games, puzzles, andgames involving multiple vehicles, among others.

Description of the Figures

To facilitate a complete understanding of the present disclosure, theremainder of the detailed description describes the present disclosurewith reference to the remaining drawings, wherein like reference numbersare referenced with like numerals throughout.

Turning now to FIG. 2, an illustrative network environment 200 in whichthe in-vehicle gaming system may operate is shown. The networkenvironment 200 may include one or more user computing devices 202 (suchas user computing devices 202A-202C), a network 204, a content server206, and a content data store 208. The constituents of the networkenvironment 200 may be in communication with each other either locallyor over the network 204. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 2, the usercomputing devices 202A-202C are in communication with the network 204,the network 204 is in communication with the content server 206, and thecontent server 206 is in communication with the content data store 208.

A user computing device 202 may be any computing device capable ofcommunicating over the network 204, such as a laptop or tablet computer,personal computer, personal digital assistant (PDA), hybrid PDA/mobilephone, mobile phone, in-vehicle computer device or navigation system,global positioning system (GPS) device, electronic book reader, set-topbox, camera, audiobook player, digital media player, video game console,in-store kiosk, television, one or more processors, integratedcomponents for inclusion in computing devices, appliances, electronicdevices for inclusion in vehicles or machinery, gaming devices, or thelike. The user computing device 202 may communicate over the network204, for example, to obtain content from the content server 206, or totransmit user information or answers to the content server 206. In someinstances, the user computing devices 202A-202C may communicate witheach other over the network 204 as well, e.g., user computing device202A may be able to communicate with user computing device 202B.Alternatively, the user computing devices 202A-202C may be able tocommunicate with each other directly.

The user computing device 202 may generally be capable of conveyingcontent to a user of the user computing device 202, and receiving inputfrom the user. For example, the user computing device 202 may be capableof playing audio content by directing audible output through speakers,headphones, or the like. The user computing device 202 may also becapable of displaying images or video content on a display screen. Theuser computing device 202 may further be capable of conveying questionsabout an item of content; receiving selections by the user; providingtasks for the user to perform in order to select an answer or content;receiving audio or gesture input; and performing other functions toimplement the in-vehicle gaming system.

In some embodiments, the user computing device 202 also stores one ormore items of content in an electronic data store. For example, the usercomputing device 202 may include one or more hard disk drives, solidstate memories, and/or any other type of non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium accessible to or integrated within theuser computing device 202. These items may be retrieved from storage andconveyed by the user computing device 202. These items of content mayinclude one or more questions as described above.

The network 204 may be any wired network, wireless network, orcombination thereof. In addition, the network 204 may be a personal areanetwork, local area network, wide area network, cable network, satellitenetwork, cellular telephone network, or combination thereof. Protocolsand components for communicating via the Internet or any of the otheraforementioned types of communication networks are well known to thoseskilled in the art of computer communications and thus, need not bedescribed in more detail herein.

The content server 206 may be a computing device that performs a varietyof operations to implement the in-vehicle gaming system. For example,the content server 206 may provide in-vehicle game content to the usercomputing device 202; receive user identifying information from the usercomputing device 202; analyze environmental conditions of the usercomputing devices 202A-202C; among other operations. Additionaloperations of the content server 206 are described below with respect toFIG. 3.

The content server 206 may be in communication with the content datastore 208. The content data store 208 may electronically store items ofcontent, such as audiobooks, musical works, electronic books, televisionprograms, video clips, movies, multimedia content, video games, andother types of content. The content data store 208 may also maintaininformation about the items of content that it stores, such asinformation about the genre of each item of content; an author ordirector of each item of content; the subject of each item of content;and other information about the content, such as information aboutcharacters, settings, and moods of portions of each item of content. Thecontent data store 208 may further store user data that associates apotential user of the in-vehicle gaming system with the items of contentthat it stores. The content data store 208 may be embodied in hard diskdrives, solid state memories, and/or any other type of non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium accessible to the content server 206.The content data store 208 may also be distributed or partitioned acrossmultiple storage devices as is known in the art without departing fromthe scope of the present disclosure.

The user computing device 202 and the content server 206 may each beembodied in a plurality of components, each executing an instance of therespective content of the user computing device 202 and the contentserver 206. A server or other computing system implementing the usercomputing device 202 and the content server 206 may include a networkinterface, memory, processing unit, and non-transitory computer-readablemedium drive, all of which may communicate with each other by way of acommunication bus. Moreover, a processing unit may itself be referred toas a computing device. The network interface may provide connectivityover the network 204 and/or other networks or computer systems. Theprocessing unit may communicate to and from memory containing programinstructions that the processing unit executes in order to operate theuser computing device 202 and content server 206. The memory generallyincludes RAM, ROM, and/or other persistent and/or auxiliarynon-transitory computer-readable storage media.

It will be recognized that many of the devices described above areoptional and that embodiments of the network environment 200 may or maynot combine devices. Furthermore, devices need not be distinct ordiscrete. Devices may also be reorganized in the network environment200. For example, the content server 206 may be represented in a singlephysical server or, alternatively, may be split into multiple physicalservers. The content server 206 and the content data store 208 may becombined. The entire content server 206 and content data store 208 maybe represented in a single user computing device 202 as well.

Additionally, it should be noted that in some embodiments, the contentserver 206 may be executed by one more virtual machines implemented in ahosted computing environment. The hosted computing environment mayinclude one or more rapidly provisioned and released computingresources, which computing resources may include computing, networkingand/or storage devices. A hosted computing environment may also bereferred to as a cloud computing environment.

In operation, a user interacts with the user computing device 202 toplay a game. In an embodiment, the user computing device 202 is anembedded display as depicted with the in-vehicle display 108 in FIG. 1.In another embodiment, the user computing device 202 is a handheld orportable device, such as a mobile phone or smartphone. The user mayinteract with the user computing device 202 through, for example, touch,voice, or gesture. For example, in one embodiment, the user computingdevice 202 is an embedded display, such as an in-vehicle navigationsystem display. In this embodiment, the user or player interacts withthe in-vehicle game by touching the display to select answers toquestions. In another embodiment, the in-vehicle game may be voicecontrolled, such that the user interacts with the in-vehicle game byspeaking. In this example, the user computing device 202 provides ameans for voice input, and output. This may include, for example,questions being presented to the user or player as text or pictures onthe display, or as sounds received aurally, such as spoken words,through the vehicle audio system. Alternatively, questions orinformation may be presented to the user tactilely and/or hapticallythrough, for example, vibrations and/or bumps (such as Braille). Tactilepresentation may also include presentations made via controllers and/orother devices or parts of the vehicle (such as a steering wheel) withwhich the user may interact.

The user computing device 202 communicates with the content server 206to request game content. The game content request is processed by thecontent server 206, and necessary content information is requested fromthe content data store 208. The necessary content information is thentransmitted back to the content server 206, and then to the usercomputing device 202. The user of the in-vehicle game system is thenpresented with the game content at the user computing device 202, andmay respond. Responses from the user are then transmitted back to thecontent server 206 through the network 204.

The user computing devices 202A-202C of FIG. 2 show that multipledevices may communicate with the content server 206. Thesecommunications may happen simultaneously, and may all relate to the samein-vehicle game, or may relate to different in-vehicle games. In oneembodiment, multiple users are involved in the same in-vehicle game, andeach of the user computing devices 202A-202C are presenting the userswith game data or content provided and coordinated by the content server206. In another embodiment, the user computing devices 202A-202C arepresenting to users of different and unrelated in-vehicle games. In thisembodiment, there may be multiple different vehicles, each of which hasan independent in-vehicle game running, or there may be multiple usersin the same vehicle that are each participating in their own independentin-vehicle game.

In an embodiment, the in-vehicle gaming system allows the user to answera question by speech or voice recognition. This may be accomplished by avoice recognition system implemented in three exemplary ways: As a firstalternative, especially for simple games, such as trivia games, thein-vehicle gaming system may recognize a response consisting of only aspoken letter. For example, the possible answers may include ‘A,’ ‘B,’or ‘C,’ and the voice recognition system of the in-vehicle gaming systemmay simply have to distinguish between the letters in the voiceresponse. As a second alternative, the in-vehicle gaming system may waitfor a particular response consisting of a word or phrase. Thus, if theuser responds with the correct word or phrase, the voice recognitionsystem may recognize the response as correct. As a third alternative,the in-vehicle gaming system may recognize any arbitrary response. Thus,the user may respond with any word or phrase and the system mayrecognize it. Any of the three described voice recognition systemsdescribed may be implemented depending on the needs of the particularembodiment of the in-vehicle gaming system. In general, the firstalternative is simpler to implement than the second, and the second thanthe third. The voice recognition capability may be implemented inhardware or software, in the user computing device 202 or the contentserver 206 or other component of the in-vehicle gaming system usingvoice recognition methods known in the art.

In another embodiment, the in-vehicle gaming system allows the user toanswer a question by typing an answer on the user computing device 202,a vehicle embedded computing device, or on some other inputdevice/element, for example a keyboard, smartphone or touch screeninterface, in communication with the in-vehicle gaming system. In oneexample embodiment, the user may be able to provide an answer bypressing one of a few large colored areas, by gesturing on the interface(for example, a swipe up or down), by pressing on the interface with acertain number of fingers (for example, one finger for ‘A,’ two fingersfor ‘B’), or by tapping a certain number of times for specific answers.Alternatively, the user may use the buttons built into the vehicle'sdash or steering wheel to respond to questions.

Alternatively, each of the user computing devices 202A-202C maycommunicate directly with one another through one of the aforementionedcommunications means. For example, each of the user computing devices202A-202C may communicate through the data network of a wireless networkprovider.

Other data not strictly related to the game content may be transmittedamong the user computing devices 202A-202C and/or the content server206, including for example, global position data (for example, GPSdata).

Some or all game content may be stored on the user computing device 202in, for example, electronic memory. In this embodiment, the in-vehiclegame system may not require the content server 206 or the content datastore 208, but the functionality of these components may be incorporatedin the user computing device 202.

Alternatively, the user computing devices 202A-202C may communicate witha vehicle embedded computing device. In this embodiment, communicationamong the user computing devices 202A-202C and/or the content server 206are relayed through the vehicle embedded computing device. Such anembodiment is discussed in additional detail below in reference to FIG.4.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of the content server 206 shown in FIG. 2.The content server 206 includes an arrangement of computer hardware andsoftware components that may be used to implement in-vehicle gamingsystem. FIG. 3 depicts a general architecture of the content server 206illustrated in FIG. 2. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that thecontent server 206 may include more (or fewer) components than thoseshown in FIG. 3. It is not necessary, however, that all of thesegenerally conventional components be shown in order to provide anenabling disclosure.

The content server 206 includes a processing unit 302, a networkinterface 304, a non-transitory computer-readable medium drive 306, aninput/output device interface 308, and a memory 310, all of which maycommunicate with one another by way of a communication bus. Asillustrated, the content server 206 is optionally associated with, or incommunication with, an optional display 318 and an optional input device320. The optional display 318 and optional input device 320 may be usedin embodiments in which users interact directly with the content server206, such as an integrated in-store kiosk or integrated component forinclusion in an automobile, boat, train, or airplane, for example. Inother embodiments, the optional display 318 and optional input device320 may be included in the user computing device 202 shown in FIG. 2.The network interface 304 may provide content server 206 withconnectivity to one or more networks or computing systems. Theprocessing unit 302 may thus receive information and instructions fromother computing systems (such as the user computing device 202) orservices via a network. The processing unit 302 may also communicate toand from memory 310 and further provide output information for theoptional display 318 via the input/output device interface 308. Theinput/output device interface 308 may accept input from the optionalinput device 320, such as a keyboard, mouse, digital pen, touch screen,or gestures recorded via motion capture. The input/output deviceinterface 308 may also output audio data to speakers or headphones (notshown).

The memory 310 contains computer program instructions that theprocessing unit 302 executes in order to implement one or moreembodiments of the in-vehicle gaming system. The memory 310 generallyincludes RAM, ROM and/or other persistent or non-transitorycomputer-readable storage media. The memory 310 may store an operatingsystem 314 that provides computer program instructions for use by theprocessing unit 302 in the general administration and operation of thecontent server 206. The memory 310 may further include other informationfor implementing aspects of the in-vehicle gaming system. For example,in one embodiment, the memory 310 includes a user interface module 312that facilitates generation of user interfaces (such as by providinginstructions therefor) for display upon a computing device such as theuser computing device 202. For example, a user interface may bedisplayed via a navigation interface such as a web browser installed ona user computing device 202. In addition, memory 310 may include orcommunicate with the content data store 208. Content stored in thecontent data store 208 may include various types of items of content asdescribed in with respect to FIG. 2.

In addition to the user interface module 312, the memory 310 may includea content customization module 316 that may be executed by theprocessing unit 302. In one embodiment, the content customization module316 performs the content customization aspects of the in-vehicle gamingsystem. As will be explained in more detail below, in some embodiments,the in-vehicle gaming system identifies the user or users, andcustomizes the gameplay and game content for that particular user orusers. For example, once the user is identified, the contentcustomization module 316 further identifies characteristics of the userthat may be relevant to game content customization. Such characteristicsmay include, for example, the user's age or education, the user'sinterests, or the content that the player owns, such as books,audiobooks, movies, or music, among other things. Thus, in the exampleof a trivia game, the content customization module 316 may createcontent for the trivia questions that is drawn from information orthemes of content the player owns. In another example, the difficultylevel of the content may be adjusted by the content customization module316 based on the user's characteristics. If, for example, the useranswers a number of difficult questions wrong, the questions may beadjusted to be of a type that are generally easier to answer. In thisway, the content of the in-vehicle game may be dynamically generated oradjusted by the content customization module 316 based on the identityof the user.

As will be discussed further below with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6, thecontent customization module 316 may also perform dynamic adjustments ormodifications to the gameplay to account for the distraction of theuser/driver of the vehicle in which the in-vehicle gaming system isbeing used. The content customization module 316 may monitor a number ofenvironmental factors as the driver uses the in-vehicle gaming system toassess driver distraction. These factors may include, for example, thedriver's driving behavior, other people in the vehicle and theirlocations and actions, the speed and location of the vehicle, theenvironment surrounding the vehicle, and the weather, among others.

Thus, the driver may begin playing the game in the normal gameplaystate, but the gameplay state may be modified by the contentcustomization module 316 to reduce driver distraction. Modifications tothe gameplay state may include changing the focus of the game, changingthe game difficulty, and reducing the volume of the game, among otherthings. For example, in the trivia game example, as the user/driveranswers questions, the content of each subsequent question may be madeeasier or more difficult. The content customization module 316 may alsocompletely interrupt gameplay, or end the game, in response to thementioned environmental factors to reduce driver distraction. Thefunctioning and example routines of the content customization module 316will be further explained below in reference to FIGS. 5-8.

Alternatively, the content customization module 316 may be implementedin hardware, or may consist of multiple elements or modules, some or allof which may not be located in the content server 206. For example, insome embodiments the content customization module 316 is implementedpartially or entirely by one or more user computing devices 202, or in avehicle embedded computing device, such as the vehicle embeddedcomputing device 402 of FIG. 4. In this alternative, the contentcustomization would be performed in either the user computing device 202or the vehicle embedded computer device 402. Accordingly, the usercomputing device 202 may include a content customization module 316 andother components that operate similarly to the components illustrated aspart of the content server 206, including a processing unit 302, networkinterface 304, non-transitory computer-readable medium drive 306,input/output interface 208, memory 310, user interface module 312, andso forth. One of skill in the art will appreciate that the contentcustomization module 316 could additionally be implemented in a numberof different ways, and at different locations within the in-vehiclegaming system that are not explicitly disclosed here. For example, thecontent customization module 316 could alternatively be a stand-alonemodule external to the content server 206, but which communicates withthe content server 206, the user computing device 202, or the contentserver 206 and the user computing device 202 individually orsimultaneously.

FIG. 4 illustrates another network environment 400 in which thein-vehicle gaming system may operate. In this embodiment, the networkenvironment 400 may include one or more user computing devices 403 (suchas user computing devices 403A-403B), a vehicle embedded computingdevice 402, a network 204, a content server 206, and a content datastore 208. The constituents of the network environment 400 may be incommunication with each other either locally or over the network 204.For example, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the user computing device 403 arein communication with the vehicle embedded computing device 402, thevehicle embedded computing device 402 is in communication with thenetwork 204, the network 204 is in communication with the content server206, and the content server 206 is in communication with the contentdata store 208.

Many of the aspects of the network environment 400 are analogous tothose of the network environment 200 described above in reference toFIG. 2. Accordingly, any alternatives or characteristics discussed abovewith respect to similar components should be understood to apply equallyhere. For example, the network 204 of FIGS. 2 and 4 are understood to bea similar component which functions as described above. Likewise withrespect to the content server 206, the content data store 208, and theuser computing devices 403A-403B (which are analogous to the usercomputing devices 202A-202C of FIG. 2). Thus, primarily the differencesin operation between the network environment 200 of FIG. 2 and thenetwork environment 400 of FIG. 4 will be described in reference to FIG.4.

Referring to FIG. 4, the vehicle embedded computing device 402 may beany computing vehicle embedded device capable of communicating over thenetwork 204, such as a laptop or tablet computer, personal computer,personal digital assistant (PDA), hybrid PDA/mobile phone, mobile phone,in-vehicle computer device or navigation system, global positioningsystem (GPS) device, electronic book reader, audiobook player, digitalmedia player, video game console, television, one or more processors,integrated components for inclusion in computing devices, appliances,electronic devices for inclusion in vehicles or machinery, gamingdevices, or the like. The vehicle embedded computing device 402 maycommunicate over the network 204, for example, to obtain content fromthe content server 206, or to transmit user information or answers tothe content server 206. Similarly, the user computing devices 403A-403Bmay communicate through the vehicle embedded computing device 402 andthe network 204 with the content server 206. In some instances, the usercomputing devices 403A-403B may communicate with each other through thevehicle embedded computing device 402 as well, for example, usercomputing device 403A may be able to communicate with user computingdevice 403B. Alternatively, the user computing devices 403A-403B may beable to communicate with each other directly.

The vehicle embedded computing device 402 may generally be capable ofconveying content to a user of the vehicle embedded computing device402, and receiving input from the user. For example, the vehicleembedded computing device 402 may be capable of playing audio content bydirecting audible output through speakers, headphones, or the like. Thevehicle embedded computing device 402 may also be capable of displayingimages or video content on a display screen. The vehicle embeddedcomputing device 402 may further be capable of conveying questions aboutan item of content; receiving selections by the user; providing tasksfor the user to perform in order to select an answer or content;receiving audio or gesture input; and performing other functions toimplement the in-vehicle gaming system. Additionally, the vehicleembedded computing device 402 may be capable of conveying, playing,and/or displaying any of the aforementioned to the user by transmittingthe information to the user computing device 403. Thus, the user orusers of the in-vehicle gaming system of FIG. 4 may interact with thesystem (in other words, play the game) through the vehicle embeddedcomputing device 402, the user computing device 403, or both.

In some embodiments, the vehicle embedded computing device 402 alsostores one or more items of content in an electronic data store. Forexample, the vehicle embedded computing device 402 may include one ormore hard disk drives, solid state memories, and/or any other type ofnon-transitory computer-readable storage medium accessible to orintegrated within the vehicle embedded computing device 402. These itemsmay be retrieved from storage and conveyed by vehicle embedded computingdevice 402. These items of content may include one or more questions asdescribed above.

Communications between the vehicle embedded computing device 402 and theuser computing device 403 may be through any wired, wireless, or othercommunications method. For example, such communication may beaccomplished through WiFi, Bluetooth, Cellular, Radio Frequency (RF),USB, Near Field Communications (NFC), or the like. Protocols andcomponents for communicating via the Internet or any of the otheraforementioned types of communication protocols are well known to thoseskilled in the art of computer communications and thus, need not bedescribed in more detail herein.

The vehicle embedded computing device 402 may be embodied in a pluralityof components, each executing an instance of the respective content ofthe vehicle embedded computing device 402. A server or other computingsystem implementing the vehicle embedded computing device 402 mayinclude a network interface, memory, processing unit, and non-transitorycomputer-readable medium drive, all of which may communicate with eachother by way of a communication bus. Moreover, a processing unit mayitself be referred to as a computing device. The network interface mayprovide connectivity over the network 204 and/or other networks orcomputer systems. The processing unit may communicate to and from memorycontaining program instructions that the processing unit executes inorder to operate the vehicle embedded computing device 402. The memorygenerally includes RAM, ROM, and/or other persistent and/or auxiliarynon-transitory computer-readable storage media.

It will be recognized that many of the devices described above areoptional and that embodiments of the network environment 400 may or maynot combine devices. Furthermore, devices need not be distinct ordiscrete. Devices may also be reorganized in the network environment400. For example, the content server 206 may be represented in a singlephysical server or, alternatively, may be split into multiple physicalservers. The content server 206 and the content data store 208 may becombined. The entire content server 206 may be represented in thevehicle embedded computing device 402 or a single user computing device403 as well.

In operation, a user interacts with the user computing device 403 and/orthe vehicle embedded computing device 402 to play a game. In anembodiment, the vehicle embedded computing device 402 is an embeddeddisplay as depicted with the in-vehicle display 108 in FIG. 1. Inanother embodiment, the user computing device 403 is a handheld orportable device, such as a mobile phone, tablet or smartphone. The usermay interact with the user computing device user computing device 403and/or the vehicle embedded computing device 402 through, for example,touch, voice, or gesture. For example, in one embodiment, the vehicleembedded computing device 402 is an embedded display, such as anin-vehicle navigation system display. In this embodiment, the user orplayer interacts with the in-vehicle game by touching the display toselect answers to questions. Alternatively, the users may interact withthe game through the user computing devices 403A-403B. In anotherembodiment, the in-vehicle game may be voice controlled, such that theuser interacts with the in-vehicle game by speaking. In this example,the vehicle embedded computing device 402 and/or the user computingdevice 403 provides a means for voice input, and output. This mayinclude, for example, questions being presented to the user or player astext or pictures on the display, or as sounds, such as spoken words,through the vehicle audio system.

The vehicle embedded computing device 402 communicates with the contentserver 206 to request game content. The game content request isprocessed by the content server 206, and necessary information isrequested from the content data store 208. The necessary contentinformation is then transmitted back to the content server 206, and thento the vehicle embedded computing device 402. The user of the in-vehiclegame system is then presented with the game content at the vehicleembedded computing device 402, and may respond. Alternatively, thevehicle embedded computing device 402 may transmit the game content tothe user computing device 403, where it is then presented to the user ofthe in-vehicle gaming system. Responses from the user are thentransmitted back to the content server 206 through the network 204.

In an alternative embodiment, the network environment 400 may includemultiple vehicle embedded computing devices 402 communicating withmultiple user computing devices 403.

Alternatively, some or all game content may be stored on the vehicleembedded computing device 402 and/or the user computing device 403 in,for example, electronic memory. In this embodiment, the in-vehicle gamesystem may not require the content server 206 or the content data store208, but the functionality of these components may be incorporated inthe vehicle embedded computing device 402 and/or user computing device403.

Alternatively, as discussed above, the content customization module 316of FIG. 3 may be implemented entirely or partially in the vehicleembedded computing device 402.

FIG. 5 shows a flow diagram illustrating the various gameplay adjustmentstates referenced above with respect to preventing driver distraction.For this figure (and additionally, for FIGS. 6 and 8), arrows indicatepaths that may be selected by a user, by one or more users, orautomatically by relevant in-vehicle gaming system components (such as,for example, the content server 206 or the content customization module316).

The content customization module 316 may perform dynamic adjustments ormodifications to the gameplay to account for the distraction of theuser/driver of the vehicle in which the in-vehicle gaming system isbeing used. The content customization module 316 may monitor a number ofenvironmental factors as the driver uses the in-vehicle gaming system toassess driver distraction. These factors may include, for example, thedriver's driving behavior, other people in the vehicle and theirlocations and actions, the speed and location of the vehicle, theenvironment surrounding the vehicle, and the weather, among others. Theuse of these environmental factors will be discussed in further detailbelow in reference to FIG. 6.

Thus, the driver may begin playing the game in the normal gameplaystate, but the gameplay state may be modified by the contentcustomization module 316 to reduce driver distraction. Modifications tothe gameplay state may include changing the focus of the game, changingthe game difficulty, and reducing the volume of the game, among otherthings. For example, in the trivia game example, as the user/driveranswers questions, the content of each subsequent question may be madeeasier or more difficult. The content customization module 316 may alsocompletely interrupt gameplay, or end the game, in response to thementioned environmental factors to reduce driver distraction. Thefunctioning and example routines of the content customization module 316will be further explained below in reference to FIGS. 5-8.

Referring to FIG. 5, gameplay states 500 are shown. The gameplay states500 will now be described in reference to FIGS. 2, 3, and 5. The user ofthe in-vehicle gaming system chooses to begin a game at begin game state502. At this point the in-vehicle game is activated, the user isidentified, and the gameplay proceeds to full gameplay state 504. Infull gameplay state 504, the user computing device 202 is communicatingwith the content server 206 through the network 204. Additionally,content is being drawn by the content server 206 from the content datastore 208, customized by the content customization module 316, andtransmitted back and presented to the user at the user computing device202.

The gameplay states 500 include environmental input-induced gameplaystate change arrows 512, which indicate optional gameplay statetransitions that may occur in response to environmental inputs. As willbe described below in reference to FIG. 6, environmental inputs andfactors are used to calculate a distraction index. That is, theenvironment of the user of the in-vehicle gaming system is used by thein-vehicle gaming system, and specifically in a particular embodiment,the content customization module 316, to calculate a distraction index.The distraction index represents the degree of distraction that the useris experiencing. Such an index is useful, especially in the case of thedriver of a vehicle, for changing the state of the gameplay to reducedriver distraction.

Each gameplay state includes a related distraction index range. Anytimeduring gameplay that the distraction index falls outside of the range ofthe current gameplay state, that gameplay state is transitioned to thenow appropriate gameplay state. Thus, as an example, the distractionindex may include numbers 0 to 9, 0 indicating no distractions, and 9indicating severe distractions. In this example, gameplay will remain inthe full gameplay state 504 if the distraction index remains between thevalues of 0 and 1. If, however, the distraction index changes to a valuebetween 2 and 4, the state will transition along one of theenvironmental input-induced gameplay state change arrows 512 to amodified gameplay state 506. In the modified gameplay state 506, thecontent customization module 316 dynamically modifies the gameplay invarious ways to reduce the driver involvement, thereby enabling thedriver to focus more fully on driving and reducing the risk of accident.Modifications that may be made to the gameplay in the modified gameplaystate 506 will be described below.

Continuing the example, if the distraction index changes to a valuebetween 5 and 7, the state will transition along one of theenvironmental input-induced gameplay state change arrows 512 to atransfer control of gameplay state 508. In the transfer control ofgameplay state 508, the content customization module 316 dynamicallymodifies the gameplay in various ways to reduce the driver involvementfurther. For example, if there are other users/players in the vehicle,gameplay control may be transferred to those users, and the driver maybe excluded from participation in the gameplay, thus further enablingthe driver to focus more fully on driving and further reducing the riskof accident. For example, if the driver is in control of the gameplay asthe designated answerer of the trivia questions being presented to theusers, the control of the gameplay may be transferred to another userother than the driver.

Still continuing the example, if the driver of the vehicle is the onlyuser of the in-vehicle gaming system and the distraction index changesto a value between 5 and 9, or alternatively, if the driver of thevehicle is not the only user of the in-vehicle gaming system and thedistraction index changes to a value between 8 and 9, the state will betransition along one of the environmental input-induced gameplay statechange arrows 512 to an interrupted gameplay state 510. In theinterrupted gameplay state 510, the content customization module 316dynamically interrupts the gameplay to prevent any further distractionto the driver of the vehicle.

From this point, the game may end at an end game state 514, oralternatively, if the distraction index changes to be within the rangeof a gameplay state of than the interrupted gameplay state 510, thegameplay state will then transition along one of the environmentalinput-induced gameplay state change arrows 512 to the appropriate state.

It is to be understood that additional embodiments fall within thatscope of the present disclosure that use a distraction index other thanthe one described in the above example. One of skill in the art wouldunderstand, for example, that a different range of numbers may bechosen. Alternatively, the distraction index may not be represented bynumbers, but in some other way, such as by colors or signals.

Alternatively, the gameplay states 500 may include additional states, ormay include fewer states than those disclosed here. For example, in theinstance of an in-vehicle game being played by a driver alone, thetransfer control of gameplay state 508 may not be part of the gameplaystates 500. Additionally, greater granularity in gameplay may be foundwithin any of the aforementioned states. For example, the modifiedgameplay state 506 may include various sub-states that modify thegameplay in different ways depending on the types of distractions beingexperienced by the driver, or other characteristics of the driver. Forexample, in the instance of a trivia game, the difficulty level of thecontent of the gameplay may be adjusted based on the user's ability toanswer questions. If, for example, the user answers a number ofdifficult questions wrong, the questions may be adjusted to be of a typethat are generally easier to answer. In another embodiment, the user ofthe in-vehicle gaming system may be a driver or passenger in anautomated or partially automated vehicle (such as a self-driving car oran airplane with autopilot). In such an embodiment, the gameplay states500 available may take into account the current driving mode of thevehicle. For example, additional gameplay states may be available when,for example, a car is in a cruise-control mode, requiring less attentionfrom the driver. Similarly, anticipated and/or in-process driving modechanges may be taken into account.

Examples of modified gameplay include, but are not limited to: adjustingthe level of difficulty; enabling or disabling aspects of the game;adjusting the time to answer; adjusting the number of possible answers(for example, offering two possibly correct answers instead of 3 in atrivia game); simplifying the game or making the game more difficult;changing the volume of the game; speeding up or slowing down the gamepace; shifting game control to another player; excluding a certainplayer from participating; handing over complex game control to anotherplayer; basing player participation or roles on their personal profileor their location in the vehicle; among other things.

In an embodiment, the transfer control of gameplay state 508 may includeexcluding the driver/user from participating in the game. For example,the in-vehicle gaming system may include voice recognition or facerecognition components, allowing the in-vehicle gaming system torecognized the driver's voice or face, and ignore input from the driver.

In an embodiment, the gameplay state change may be so subtle that thedriver may not notice the change. In an embodiment, gameplay statechanges may be based at least in part on the user's responses gameplayprompts (for example, questions). For example, a user's correct responseto a question may result in, for example, a speeding up of the gamepace. In another embodiment, additional gameplay states may include, forexample, changes in characteristics or operations of the vehicle. Suchcharacteristics or operations of the vehicle may include, for example,temperature change, windows going up or down, a sun roof opening orclosing, the maximum speed of the vehicle being reduced, among otherpossibilities. Thus, in a trivia game, for example, an incorrectlyanswered trivia question may result in a gameplay state changecomprising a temperature change in the cabin of the vehicle (such as anair conditioner turning off or on). In yet a further embodiment,incorrect and/or correct responses to gameplay elements may result in again or loss of money and/or points related to the in-vehicle game.

FIG. 6 shows a flow diagram depicting an illustrative routine foradjusting gameplay states. The illustrative routine for adjustinggameplay states will be described with reference to FIGS. 2, 3, 5, and6. In general, FIG. 6 depicts an example process for generating thedistraction index referenced above, and how the distraction indeximpacts the gameplay state.

At block 602 environmental inputs are received by the in-vehicle gamingsystem. These inputs or data may be sensed or gathered by the usercomputing device 202, or by the content server 206, among othercomponents. For example, the content server 206 may gather informationthrough the network 204 from third-party data sources. Environmentaldata gathered via the Internet may include, for example, the currentweather where the vehicle is located, current traffic conditions, andscenery that the user may be experiencing, among other data. The usercomputing device 202 may include a GPS sensor, an ambient light sensor,a proximity sensor, and an accelerometer, among other sensors, that mayprovide environmental inputs and data. In the case of a vehicle embeddeddevice, or the user computing device 202 in communication the vehicle,vehicle sensor inputs may be gathered. If the user has been identifiedthen user information may be gathered.

Examples of environmental data and inputs that may be gathered and usedby the in-vehicle gaming system include, but are not limited to: inputsfrom the vehicle sensors including, for example, cruise control(automatic vehicle speed control system) activation, vehicle speed,vehicle ventilation or air conditioning system activation, the RPM(rotations per minute) of the vehicle engine, acceleration of thevehicle, vehicle fuel level, vehicle fuel efficiency (current miles pergallon), whether the headlights are activated, On-Board Diagnostic (OBD)information (including the performance of the vehicle, mechanicalmalfunctions, the vehicle's maintenance schedule), and the type ofvehicle, among other things; the number of people in the vehicle; thelocations of people in the vehicle; the identities of people in thevehicle; the characteristics of people in the vehicle; the location ofthe vehicle or user; nearby landmarks; weather; humidity; elevation; thenumber of seat belts fastened in the vehicle; the number of vehicleoccupants who do not have their seat belts fastened; the noise level inthe vehicle; the temperature in the vehicle; traffic conditionsincluding stop-and-go traffic, accidents and other obstructions; theproximity of emergency vehicles or sirens; various types of drivingconditions include the visibility level (for example, whether fog orrain has limited the visibility level of the driver); the existence oftraffic congestion ahead of the driver; historical data and informationabout the road, traffic conditions, and weather; the time of day and thelight level outside; the proximity of other vehicles to the user'svehicle; irregular vehicle motion; and honking by the user or othersnear the user's vehicle.

Additionally, data and inputs disclosed below in reference to FIG. 8 forgame customization may also be used as inputs for calculating thedistraction index.

At block 606, empirical data is used in developing an input weightingformula in block 608. Empirical data may include, for example,information on the causes of driver distraction, and the degree ofdistraction caused by various environmental stimuli. For example, suchdata may include information that drivers are highly distracted bystop-and-go traffic, moderately distracted by rainy weather, and notsignificantly distracted by billboards. This data may then be used indeveloping the input weighting formula, which is used in calculating thedistraction index. The formula would, in this example, assign a greaterdistraction weight to an environment that included stop-and-go traffic,a lesser distraction weight to an environment that included rainyweather, and very little distraction weight to an environment thatincluded billboards.

Then, at block 604, the input weighting formula is combined with thereceived environmental inputs, and a distraction index is calculated.The distraction index is an indication of the distraction level of thedriver. The distraction index may be directly related to the distractionlevel of the driver, and may be correlated with the distraction level ofthe driver. Further, the distraction index may be calculated by thecontent customization module 316. Next, in block 610, the contentcustomization module 316 compares the calculated distraction index withthe current gameplay state's range of acceptable distraction indexvalues. If the calculated distraction index is outside of the range ofthe current gameplay state distraction index range, the process proceedsto block 612. In block 612, the gameplay state is changed to theappropriate state as described above with respect to FIG. 5. If thecalculated distraction index is within the range of the current gameplaystate distraction index range, the process proceeds to block 614. Inblock 614, the gameplay state remains in the current state.

The distraction index is calculated by the content customization module316. The distraction index is calculated frequently so that the gameplaystate may be adjusted quickly when new environmental conditions arise.The distraction index may be calculated, for example, many times eachsecond. Alternatively, the distraction index is calculated lessfrequently so as to preserve data bandwidth and computational resources.For example, the distraction index may be calculated every second, everyfew second, a few times a minute, every minute, or even less frequently.In an embodiment, the frequency of the distraction index calculation isdependent on the type of game being played by the user or users. Forexample, a trivia game may necessitate only an infrequent update of thedistraction index, while another type of game may require more frequentupdate.

In an embodiment, the distraction index is calculated based on aheuristic formula to increase the speed of the calculation. In anembodiment, the distraction index is calculated by a dedicated moduleother than the content customization module 316, and the index is thencommunicated to the content customization module 316.

In an alternative embodiment, the types of environmental inputs ordistractions are taken into account by the content customization module316 in modifying the gameplay. This embodiment may include ‘distractiontype’ data in addition to the simple distraction index considered whenmodifying the gameplay. For example, an emergency vehicle, such as anambulance, in the vicinity of the vehicle may increase the distractionindex, but may cause a simple lowering of the volume of the game beingplayed by the driver, as opposed to simplifying of the questiondifficulty. Alternatively, such an event may have only a minor impact onthe distraction index, but the content customization module 316 may beconfigured to cause the gameplay to shift to the interrupted gameplaystate 510 because of the importance of being aware of emergencyvehicles.

In yet another embodiment, data personal to the identified user may beused in calculating the distraction index. In this case, the privacy ofpersonal data would be protected. Information that a particular user iseasily distracted in general, or easily distracted by certain things,may be used by the content customization module 316 in calculating thedistraction index. For example, greater weight may be given todistractions that have a greater impact on a particular user of thein-vehicle gaming system. In an embodiment, the user's driving history,including safety record or traffic infractions may be taken into accountwhen calculating the distraction index. In another embodiment, the modeland/or type of the vehicle, as well as the user's history and experiencein relation to the vehicle may be taken into account in calculating thedistraction index. In yet a further embodiment, the in-vehicle gamingsystem may track the user's eye position, eye focus, and/or eyemovement, among other things, to further determine the user'sdistraction, sleepiness, and/or attention. Alternatively, the in-vehiclegaming system may use other means to measure the user's attentivenessand/or sleepiness in determining the distraction index. Further, themodel and/or type of the vehicle, the user's driving history, the user'sexperience with the vehicle, the user's eye movements, and the user'ssleepiness, as well as other factors listed above, may be consideredenvironmental factors that may influence the calculation of thedistraction index and/or modification of the in-vehicle gaming system.

Environmental inputs and data may also be used in game contentcustomization, as will be described below in reference to FIG. 8.

In an embodiment, the modified gameplay state 506 may allow the driverto be more engaged in the gameplay when the cruise control of thevehicle is activated, than when it is deactivated.

In an embodiment, the user of the in-vehicle gaming system is notifiedand the gameplay is interrupted if sirens are detected, or if emergencyvehicles are in close proximity to the user's vehicle.

In an embodiment, the in-vehicle gaming system includes a distraction orsafety meter that indicates the distraction level of the driver, andwhich is related to the distraction index. In an embodiment, thedistraction or safety meter is displayed to the driver and/or otherusers of the in-vehicle gaming system. Alternatively, the in-vehiclegaming system may include a caution rating or score related to thedistraction index or to a particular in-vehicle game.

FIG. 7 is a pictorial diagram depicting an example user interfacedisplay 700 for the in-vehicle gaming system. The user interface 700includes a game title 702, a list of detected game participants 706,correct buttons 708, wrong buttons 710, a link to accounts button 712,and a switch to voice control button 714. The correct buttons 708, wrongbuttons 710, link to accounts button 712, and switch to voice controlbutton 714 consist of selectable user interface controls.

The user interface 700 may communicate with the user computing device202, the user computing device 403, or the vehicle embedded computingdevice 402. Alternatively, the user interface 700 may be shown on adisplay attached to any of the user computing device 202, user computingdevice 403, or vehicle embedded computing device 402.

In the present embodiment, the user of the in-vehicle gaming systeminteracts with the in-vehicle gaming system through the user interface700. The users of the game have chosen to participate in a trivia game,and the in-vehicle gaming system has detected three participants, listedas the detected game participants 706. Users may be detected by thein-vehicle gaming system based on any number of the user'scharacteristics. For example, the in-vehicle gaming system may obtainseat adjustment sensor data from the vehicle embedded computing device402. This data may be used by the content server 206 for determining theidentity of the user occupying a particular seat of the vehicle.Alternatively, weight sensor data may be used by the in-vehicle gamingsystem to detect the occupant of a particular seat of the vehicle. Thein-vehicle gaming system may gather and store historical data aboutusers, thus enabling the system to guess with increasing accuracy theidentity of the users. This system may require that the user initiallyself-identify. Subsequently, however, the system will be able to detectthe identity of the user.

Examples of data and inputs that may be gathered and used by thein-vehicle gaming system in determining the identity of the users mayinclude, but are not limited to: the user's position in the vehicle; theway user's seat in the vehicle is adjusted; the user's seat location inthe vehicle; historical data about the locations the user has sat in thevehicle and the way the user has adjusted their seat; the user's height,weight and other physical characteristics; facial recognition and voicerecognition of the user; data and communication with the user's mobilephone or smartphone including through, for example, Bluetooth; theuser's key; the user's GPS location as provided by their mobile phone orsmartphone; the user's account profile or other identifying information(described in further detail below); the user's social-graph information(including, for example, their friends and relatives as identified frompublic data on the Internet or, with permission, through their socialnetwork accounts); and other input from the user or confirmation by theuser of their identity.

In an embodiment, users of the in-vehicle gaming system areauthenticated, by, for example, providing self-identifying informationor a password. Alternatively, users may be authenticated throughbiometric identification such as voice or face recognition, fingerprintscan, or eye scan (such as iris or retina), among other thing.

In the user interface 700, the in-vehicle gaming system has detected thethree detected game participants 706 listed. The users are then promptedto confirm or deny their identity by pressing either the correct button708 or wrong button 710 next to their respective names. The users arealso given the option of linking the game to an account by pressing thelink to accounts button 712. Linking to an account grants the in-vehiclegaming system access to additional personal information that may berelevant in content generation, as will be described below in referenceto FIG. 8. Once the users have confirmed their identities, the game willproceed. In this example, the trivia game will proceed to ask triviaquestions of the users.

The users have the option of pressing the switch to voice control button714, which has the effect of allowing the in-vehicle game to becontrolled by voice. Alternatively, the in-vehicle game may be voicecontrolled by default. It should be noted that the user interface 700 isan example of an interface of the in-vehicle gaming system. Otherembodiments of the present disclosure may have interfaces significantlydifferent than the one shown in FIG. 7, but which still fall within thescope of the present disclosure. One of skill in the art will appreciatethat such an interface may be implemented in many different ways withoutdeparting from the spirit of the present disclosure.

In an embodiment, the in-vehicle gaming system does not include a userinterface 700, but is entirely presented by audio, and voice controlled.In an embodiment, the in-vehicle gaming system interface is presented ona head-up display (or HUD), an embedded video screen, a smartphone ormobile phone, or the like. In another embodiment, the in-vehicle gamingsystem interface is projected onto a wall or window of the vehicle, oronto an eye piece worn by the users of the in-vehicle gaming system.

FIG. 8 shows a flow diagram depicting an illustrative routine forgenerating gameplay content and data. The illustrative routine foradjusting gameplay content and data will be described in reference toFIGS. 2, 3, and 8. In general, FIG. 8 depicts an example process forgenerating and modifying gameplay data and content to relate to theusers of the in-vehicle gaming system.

At block 802, the user computing device 202 transmits player informationacross the network 204 to the content server 206. Player information mayinclude any of the user identifying information discussed above withrespect to FIG. 7. At block 804, the player information is received bythe content server 206. At this point, the user/player identity is knownby the content server 206. Next, at block 806, the content customizationmodule 316 requests player content data. For example, the contentcustomization module 316 may request any data relevant to the identifieduser from the content data store 208. Alternatively, the contentcustomization module 316 may obtain data relevant to the user from theuser account profile, from other linked accounts (such as socialnetworking accounts), and from information generally public andavailable on the Internet, among other sources. The types of datagathered are discussed further below.

If multiple users are involved in the in-vehicle game, the contentcustomization module 316 will obtain data relevant to each of the users.Next, at block 808, if there are multiple game players, the processproceeds to block 812. In block 812, the content customization module316 may find common content among the data gathered relating to theusers of the in-vehicle gaming system. Alternatively, the contentcustomization module 316 may find common themes among the data gatheredrelating to the users of the in-vehicle gaming system. The process thencontinues to block 810. Alternatively, if there is only one userinvolved in the in-vehicle game, the process proceeds directly fromblock 808 to block 810.

In block 810, the content customization module 316 generates game dataspecific to the type of game being played, customized to the specificuser or users (if there are more than one). For example, if a triviagame is being played, the trivia questions will be customized by thecontent customization module 316 to be specific to the user data andcontent obtained. More specifically, in the event of a singleuser/player, the trivia questions may be drawn from information orthemes of content the player owns (such as movies, books, e-books,audiobooks, and music, among other things). In another example, thedifficulty level of the content may be adjusted based on the user'scharacteristics, such as the user's age or education. In the event ofmultiple users/players, the in-vehicle gaming system may determine whatcontent is the same, similar, or has common themes, among the group ofusers. For example, if all of the users have bought a particular movie,the content of the in-vehicle game may be drawn directly from the movie.Thus, in the trivia game example, the trivia questions would be aboutthe movie or the characters in the movie, and would thereby apply to thewhole group. In another example, if all the users have a common interestor theme, for example, they have all bought sports-related books, thecontent of the in-vehicle game may relate to that common interest, here,sports. Thus, in the trivia games example, the trivia questions wouldhave a sports theme, and would be sports-related, and would therebyapply to the whole group. In another example, a similar content may bethe basis for customization. Thus, if groups of users have all boughtmany books, or books of a certain genre or type, ‘books’ or ‘books of aparticular genre’ may be the basis for the theme of the game content.

Once the game data has been generated, in block 814 the content server206 transmits the game data back to the user computing device 202 overthe network 204. In block 816 the game data is received by the usercomputing device 202, and thereby presented to the user playing thein-vehicle game.

Relevant data used by the content customization module 316 to customizethe game content is not limited to user content data. It may alsoinclude, for example, environmental data and inputs such as thosedisclosed above in reference to FIG. 6. Each user may have a useraccount related to the in-vehicle gaming system, which may include useridentifying information. Additionally, each user may link their useraccount with other user accounts in other services, for example, socialnetworking accounts or the like. These accounts may provide user data tobe used by the in-vehicle gaming system with user permission.

Examples of data that may be used in customizing game content include,but are not limited to: user account information such as profileinformation or social-graph information (friends and relatives); theuser's age or education; the user's work history; the user's interests;the user's language; the user's location; the content that the userowns, has bought, rented, or consumed, such as, for example, books,e-books, audiobooks, movies, and music; the recency of the user'sconsumption of the any of the aforementioned content; the type ofcontent that has recently been consumed, or that is typically consumedby the user; the user's current position in consumption of content (forexample, the fact that the user is only half way through a certainbook); information gathered from other sources and used in theproduction of game content (for example, information gathered from theInternet about a particular book that may be used as the basis of aquestion related to that book); the user's recent Internet searches orbrowsing history; the user's proximity to other in-vehicle gaming systemusers, such as other vehicles on the road or other people in thevehicle; user content that is common or similar or has similar themesamong a group of users; user content that has no commonality among agroup of users (which may, for example, be excluded from a game);information about the current route of the vehicle, or the user'sdestination (for example, book that have been written about thedestination town, or fictional characters that lived in the destinationtown); the age of the youngest user in a group of users; type of vehicledriven by the user; and the number of users or passengers in thevehicle; among other things.

In an embodiment, the in-vehicle gaming system modifies the in-vehiclegame to be appropriate for the number of users of the in-vehicle game,or the number of occupants in the vehicle.

In an embodiment, when a group of users are using the in-vehicle gamingsystem, the level of difficulty or maturity of the in-vehicle game islimited to a level appropriate for the youngest user. Alternatively, thein-vehicle game may periodically include content that is appropriate forthe youngest user. Alternatively, the in-vehicle game may likewise bemodified for the oldest user.

In an embodiment, the in-vehicle gaming system modifies or customizesthe in-vehicle game content dynamically. Alternatively, the in-vehiclegaming system modifies or customizes the in-vehicle game contentautomatically, with or without user prompt.

In an embodiment, the in-vehicle game is not customized to the specificuser or users of the in-vehicle gaming system. In this embodiment, theuser identity may not be known, or the user may not want the gamecustomized for them. Thus, the game content is generated by the contentcustomization module 316 without user-specific customization.Alternatively, the game content may be customized for a specific useramong the group of users, or for a subset of the group of users.

In another embodiment, the in-vehicle game is customized to a specifictopic or theme requested by the user. For example, the user may desire atrivia question game on the topic of movie actors. Thus, the contentcustomization module 316 may customize the game content to focus on thetopic of movie actors.

In an embodiment, the user game data acquisition and game contentcustomization described above are fully or partially performed by someother element of the in-vehicle gaming system, for example the usercomputing device 202. Game content may alternatively be stored locallyin the user's vehicle, the user's mobile electronic device, or in theuser computing device 202, and content customization may take placethere, as opposed to the content server 206. Alternatively, the contentserver 206, or the functionality of the content server 206, may beincluded in the user computing device 202. Similarly, the aforementionedfunctionality may alternatively be fully or partially included in thevehicle embedded computing device 402 of the FIG. 4.

In an embodiment, all types of game modification disclosed herein arepreformed simultaneously, or in conjunction with one-another.Additionally, all types of data, inputs, and information may be sharedamong the various routines and components of the in-vehicle gamingsystem. The information may include, for example, user data,environmental data, empirical data, content data, gameplay data, amongother things. For example, the distraction index may be used inmodifying gameplay content. User data may be used in calculating thedistraction index. The gameplay state may influence the game content,and likewise game content may impact gameplay state. No particularmethod or routine embodied in the present disclosure is necessarilyindependent of the others, and interaction and/or overlap may occur inachieving the objectives of the in-vehicle gaming system.

In an embodiment, the user of the in-vehicle gaming system may begin agame, stop the game for a period of time, and then later resume the gamewhere they left off. Alternatively, the user of the in-vehicle gamingsystem may begin a game in one location, or in a particular vehicle, andmay continue that game in another location, or another particularvehicle, with or without stopping the game for a period of time. In anembodiment, the user of the in-vehicle gaming system may be identifiedby logging into the in-vehicle gaming system. Thus, the user may selectfor a number of existing game to resume. Alternatively, the user maycreate a new game based on themes or content of an existing game. Theuser may alternatively delete or end existing games. The user may alsooptionally add additional users into an existing game, or removeexisting players from a game. Alternatively, the in-vehicle gamingsystem may suggest to the user resuming, or automatically resume, anexisting game, or starting a new game.

Various types of games and gameplay fall within the scope of the presentdisclosure. Each of the various types of games and gameplay may includeone or more users, in one or more locations. For example, multiple usersmay be participating in an in-vehicle game, but each player may be in adifferent vehicle or location. In some embodiments, some or all of theusers participating in an in-vehicle game may not be in vehicles at agiven time. For example, the in-vehicle gaming system may include usersthat are in their vehicles playing games with users that are outside oftheir vehicles. In an embodiment, the in-vehicle gaming system may beused whether or not the vehicle is moving. Alternatively, the in-vehiclegaming system may be used whether or not a driver is present.Alternatively, the in-vehicle gaming system may be used partiallyoutside of the vehicle, or includes aspects that occur outside of thevehicle. In an embodiment, some users of the in-vehicle gaming systemmay be present in the same vehicle, while others are present together inanother vehicle, or any other combination of the above.

In an embodiment, the in-vehicle gaming system may be played by multiplepeople in the same vehicle simultaneously. As described above, users ofthe in-vehicle gaming system may interact with the system through touch,voice, or gesture, among other things. The gameplay may be presented tothe users in a single display, such as a vehicle embedded display, oreach user may have their own display, such as the display associatedwith an in-vehicle entertainment system, or a smartphone. Alternatively,users may interact with the system through audio, either combinedthrough the vehicle audio system, or individually through, for example,individual headphones and microphones. The in-vehicle gaming system maydistinguish between users to receive voice commands or answers fromspecific users, among other things. In an embodiment, the in-vehiclegaming system may utilize face recognition to determine the identity orlocations of particular users. In this embodiment, the in-vehicle gamingsystem may include a focusable microphone array for allowing only aparticular user answer a question or participate in a portion of thegame.

In an embodiment, the voice of an in-vehicle GPS unit is recognized bythe in-vehicle gaming system and omitted from gameplay, similar to theway the driver's voice may be recognized and avoided to remove thedriver from gameplay due to distraction concerns.

In an embodiment, the in-vehicle gaming system includes augmentedreality displays, such as on the vehicle windshield or on glasses wornby the users, that may add game elements to what the player sees, suchas, for example, dragons, or ghost drivers.

In another embodiment, the in-vehicle gaming system includes games thatare guaranteed to not exceed a certain level of distraction under agiven set of conditions. Alternatively, the in-vehicle gaming systemincludes games that are certified to not exceed a certain level ofdistraction under a given set of conditions. In an embodiment, thein-vehicle gaming system will not execute games, or allow games to beplayed, that may exceed a certain level of distraction under a given setof conditions, or that are not certified to not exceed a certain levelof distraction under a given set of conditions.

In an embodiment, the in-vehicle gaming system may be played by multiplepeople in different vehicles simultaneously. Each vehicle may have oneor more users/players that are interacting with the in-vehicle gamingsystem. In this embodiment, game content for each of the individualvehicles may be provided by separate in-vehicle devices, or by a centralcontent server. Communications between vehicles, or individual userdevices, such as smartphones, may be directly from vehicle to vehicle,or through the central content server. Communications among vehicles maybe by audio or video, among other things. In this way, multiple vehiclescan simultaneously participate in the same in-vehicle game.

Examples of the various types of games and gameplay modes that fallwithin the scope of the present disclosure, and which may be present inany of the embodiments disclosed herein, include, but are not limitedto: games involving multiple vehicles, where drivers compete with eachother or cooperate on a common goal; trivia; puzzles; a spelling bee;math questions; games with leaderboards, progression to harder levels,and/or score-keeping; lottery-like games in which the driver's lotterynumber is created from certain actions such as numbers of stops, or thedrivers' reporting of every blue object seen during the trip; gamestailored to dynamically accommodate the travel time; games in whichpuzzle difficulty is chosen to fit the driver's commute time; games thatstart and/or end automatically at the beginning/ending of a trip orcommute; “points-of-interest” trivia games designed to ask the driverquestions about things recently passed, for example, “what was the lastfast-food restaurant passed on your left?”; a bingo game in which thedriver announces, for example, types of vehicles seen, or highway signs,and in which the driver may look at the final bingo board at the end ofthe trip; a “scavenger hunt” game in which the driver drives tolocations meeting certain criteria, for example, a parking garage on thefirst floor of a building; “road rally” games, such as one in which theGPS-powered in-vehicle gaming system scores the driver based onadherence to the rules of the road rally; a “safe driving” game in whichthe driver scores points by exhibiting safe driving behaviors, such asadhering to the speed limit, full stops at stop signs, excessiveacceleration/deceleration; a “safe driving” game in which the driver ispenalized when committing infractions; games that operate only when thedriver is driving safely; games that are suspended or terminated whenthe driver commits an infraction, such as exceeding the speed limit;games in which the driver must maintain some minimum speed for the gameto proceed; games in which the gameplay might only occur when thevehicle is stopped, for example, spell as many words as possible duringa red light; games designed to involve multiple vehicles, for examplewhere each driver is a player; games in which the multiple driverscompete against each other, for example in a multiplayer trivia game inwhich the drivers can hear each other talking and providing input to thegame; games in which teams of drivers might compete with each other; atrivia game in which the drivers on a team hear each other discuss theteam response before a distinguished team member supplies the answer;road rally games in which each driver “hands off” the route to the nextdriver, enabled by close proximity of their vehicles; games in whichdrivers join teams or games based on similar level achieved in theparticular game; games in which drivers are matched based on location orother attributes such as, for example; same highway (or highway type),same town, same vehicle (type), same direction being traveled; gamesinvolving driving “teams” which accumulate an aggregate score based onsafe driving practices, or adherence to road rally rules; a “Dungeonsand Dragons”-inspired game, in which each driver and/or passenger can bea player, in which the equivalent of “dice rolls” could be data derivedfrom random objects in the road or on the route (for example, thelicense plate in front of you, the 1st digit of the speed limit, theaddress of the next location on the left, and so on); a game in which adriver traverses the same route over and over such as with a dailycommute, in which there is a “ghost driver” who accompanies the driver,seen, for example, on the GPS display, or an augmented reality display;games or outcomes based on drivers in proximity with each other or byexhibiting similar attributes, such as the same or similar commute,within 5 miles of each other; a game in which a driver asks to beconnected with another where driving/location and other personalattributes match; games that combine play that occurs while driving withplay that occurs before or after driving; games in which the drivercreates a virtual route during a vehicle trip that is then used as inputinto a companion game or continuation of that game; games in whichpoints gained in driving mode could add to the player's overall score orcould enable access to other games, levels, or websites; games in whichthere is a “virtual” or alternative world which is “mapped” in some wayto the “real” world, such that progress, or places visited in the realworld while driving affect or correlate with the player's status in thevirtual world; an alternate reality game that a driver traverses as theyare traversing the road, and in which they add game elements to whatthey are doing in the vehicle (augmented reality); games in whichpassengers and possibly the driver may or may not have a display in thevehicle, or could receive an audio report of what is happening; a gamein which the data from the game currently being played is storedremotely, and in which state information that is accumulated or createdthat gets carried over to another context, for example to continue thesame game, or to use in another game in some way (for, example, theplayer may accumulate food and resources as they drive, and use thosefood and resources in a space game on a separate portable electronicdevice later); a game in which the player is attempting to evade afictitious driver; games involving players stuck in the same trafficjam; games with teams of drivers based on, for example, odd numberedhighways vs. even, or drivers traveling east vs. west; games in whichdifferent passengers have different roles based on where they aresitting; games based on OBD inputs, such as a game to encourage driversto drive efficiently, or to teach a driver about the vehicle'smaintenance schedule or features; games in which the player mayoptionally contact another person for help in the game, for example, aphone a friend (such as a 30 second phone call), or contact a triviamaster; and games involving continuing education such as continuinglegal education, or in which the subject matter is educational or basedon what the driver is trying to learn.

In the in-vehicle gaming system, the game data may be stored in the usercomputing device 202 or 403, the content server 206, the vehicleembedded computing device 402, or the content data store 208.

In an embodiment, the vehicle may alternatively be any other type ofvehicle such as an automobile, motorcycle, boat, train, or airplane,among others.

In another embodiment, the user of the in-vehicle gaming system may be adriver that may accept an end-user license agreement (EULA). The EULAmay include provisions that state, for example, that the driver acceptsall liability while using, operating, and/or playing the in-vehiclegaming system while driving. Examples of the liability provisionsaccepted include liability for damage to property (including the vehiclethat is being driven, other vehicles, and/or other property) or person(including injury to, or loss of life of, the driver, other passengersin the vehicle, and/or any others). The EULA may be presented to theuser/driver visually, through audio, or in some other way. The EULA maybe accepted by the user/driver before entering the vehicle, or afterentering the vehicle. The EULA may be accepted by voice, touch, orgesture. For example, the EULA may be accepted by the user/driver bypressing the gas or brake pedal, by pressing the horn of the vehicle, bytouching an in-vehicle gaming display (such as a built-in navigationdisplay or a smartphone display), and/or by speaking, among otherthings.

The in-vehicle gaming system thus allows a driver to participate in anin-vehicle game, while simultaneously reducing distraction to the driverfrom his primary activity of driving. Gameplay may be dynamicallymodified, sometimes so subtly that the driver may not consciouslynotice, to accommodate different levels of distraction on the road andin the environment. The driver using the in-vehicle gaming system mayeven be notified of the presence of emergency vehicles or traffic, thusresulting in safer driving than would otherwise be achieved. Vehiclepassengers may also participate in the in-vehicle game, providing safeentertainment for all the occupants of the vehicle.

Additionally, the in-vehicle gaming system customizes the content of thein-vehicle games being played based on the user information of theparticipants and the environment in which the game is being played.Thus, the game may be more enjoyable for the users than it wouldotherwise be. In-vehicle games may even be customized for an entiregroup of users, making the game more enjoyable for the entire group.

Depending on the embodiment, certain acts, events, or functions of anyof the processes or algorithms described herein can be performed in adifferent sequence, can be added, merged, or left out altogether (e.g.,not all described operations or events are necessary for the practice ofthe algorithm). Moreover, in certain embodiments, operations or eventscan be performed concurrently, e.g., through multi-threaded processing,interrupt processing, or multiple processors or processor cores or onother parallel architectures, rather than sequentially.

The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, routines, andalgorithm steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosedherein can be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, orcombinations of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability ofhardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules,and steps have been described above generally in terms of theirfunctionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware orsoftware depends upon the particular application and design constraintsimposed on the overall system. The described functionality can beimplemented in varying ways for each particular application, but suchimplementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing adeparture from the scope of the disclosure.

The steps of a method, process, routine, or algorithm described inconnection with the embodiments disclosed herein can be embodieddirectly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, orin a combination of the two. A software module can reside in RAM memory,flash memory, ROM memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, harddisk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of a non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium. An example storage medium can becoupled to the processor such that the processor can read informationfrom, and write information to, the storage medium. In the alternative,the storage medium can be integral to the processor. The processor andthe storage medium can reside in an ASIC. The ASIC can reside in a userterminal. In the alternative, the processor and the storage medium canreside as discrete components in a user terminal.

Conditional language used herein, such as, among others, “can,” “could,”“might,” “may,” “e.g.,” and the like, unless specifically statedotherwise, or otherwise understood within the context as used, isgenerally intended to convey that certain embodiments include, whileother embodiments do not include, certain features, elements and/orsteps. Thus, such conditional language is not generally intended toimply that features, elements and/or steps are in any way required forone or more embodiments or that one or more embodiments necessarilyinclude logic for deciding, with or without author input or prompting,whether these features, elements and/or steps are included or are to beperformed in any particular embodiment. The terms “comprising,”“including,” “having,” and the like are synonymous and are usedinclusively, in an open-ended fashion, and do not exclude additionalelements, features, acts, operations, and so forth. Also, the term “or”is used in its inclusive sense (and not in its exclusive sense) so thatwhen used, for example, to connect a list of elements, the term “or”means one, some, or all of the elements in the list.

Conjunctive language such as the phrase “at least one of X, Y and Z,”unless specifically stated otherwise, is to be understood with thecontext as used in general to convey that an item, term, etc. may beeither X, Y, or Z, or a combination thereof. Thus, such conjunctivelanguage is not generally intended to imply that certain embodimentsrequire at least one of X, at least one of Y and at least one of Z toeach be present.

While the above detailed description has shown, described, and pointedout novel features as applied to various embodiments, it can beunderstood that various omissions, substitutions, and changes in theform and details of the devices or algorithms illustrated can be madewithout departing from the spirit of the disclosure. As can berecognized, certain embodiments of the inventions described herein canbe embodied within a form that does not provide all of the features andbenefits set forth herein, as some features can be used or practicedseparately from others. The scope of certain inventions disclosed hereinis indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoingdescription. All changes which come within the meaning and range ofequivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system for in-vehicle gaming for one or moreusers, the system comprising: an electronic data store configured tostore items of gameplay content, at least one item of gameplay contentbeing associated with one or more users; and a computing device incommunication with the electronic data store, the computing deviceconfigured to: identify one or more users in a vehicle; determine, foreach identified user, one or more characteristics associated with theidentified user; detect, from among the one or more characteristicsassociated with each of the identified users, at least onecharacteristic common to a subset of the identified users; retrieve anitem of gameplay content from the electronic data store, the item ofgameplay content retrieved based at least in part on the at least onecommon characteristic; cause presentation, to the one or more users, ofthe retrieved item of gameplay content; and receive input from the oneor more users in response to the presented item of gameplay content. 2.The system of claim 1, wherein the computing device is embedded in thevehicle.
 3. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or morecharacteristics associated with the identified users comprise at leastone of: age of the user, education of the user, an interest of the user,language of the user, location of the user, content purchased by theuser, content consumed by the user, items purchased by the user and atheme associated with the user.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein theretrieved item of gameplay content is modified based at least in part onat least one of: a theme related to the at least one commoncharacteristic, a fact related to the at least one commoncharacteristic, a difficulty level, a presentation format, a genre, anda gameplay type.
 5. A computer-implemented method for modifying anin-vehicle game, the computer-implemented method comprising: undercontrol of one or more computing devices configured with specificcomputer executable instructions, causing presentation of a game to auser in a vehicle; identifying the user in the vehicle; determining oneor more characteristics associated with the user in the vehicle; andmodifying the game presented in the vehicle based at least in part onthe one or more characteristics.
 6. The computer-implemented method ofclaim 5, wherein the one or more characteristics associated with theuser comprise at least one of: age of the user, education of the user,interests of the user, language of the user, location of the user,content purchased by the user, content consumed by the user, itemspurchased by the user and a theme associated with the user.
 7. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 5, wherein the game presented inthe vehicle is modified based at least in part on at least one of: atheme related to the one or more characteristics, a fact related to theone or more characteristics, a difficulty level, a presentation format,a genre, and a gameplay type.
 8. The computer-implemented method ofclaim 5, wherein the game is presented to the user in the vehicle in atleast one of an aural presentation format, a visual presentation format,and a tactile presentation format.
 9. The computer-implemented method ofclaim 5, further comprising: receiving input from the user in responseto the game presented the vehicle, wherein the input received from theuser is at least one of voice, touch, and gesture.
 10. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 5, wherein the user in the vehicleis operating the vehicle.
 11. The computer-implemented method of claim10, further comprising: under control of the one or more computingdevices configured with specific computer executable instructions,monitoring one or more environmental factors related to the vehiclewhile the vehicle is in operation and as the game is presented to theuser operating the vehicle; and further modifying the game presented inthe vehicle based at least in part on the one more environmental factorswhile the vehicle is in operation.
 12. The computer-implemented methodof claim 11, wherein the monitored one or more environmental factorsincludes a driving history of the user operating the vehicle.
 13. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 10, wherein the user operating thevehicle is interacting with the game presented in the vehicle as thevehicle is in operation.
 14. A computer-implemented method for modifyingan in-vehicle game, the computer-implemented method comprising: undercontrol of one or more computing devices configured with specificcomputer executable instructions, causing presentation of a game to aplurality of users in a vehicle; identifying each of the plurality ofusers in the vehicle; determining, for each identified user, one or morecharacteristics associated with the identified user; detecting, fromamong the one or more characteristics associated with each of theidentified users, at least one characteristic common to a subset of theidentified users; and modifying the game presented in the vehicle basedat least in part on the at least one common characteristic.
 15. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 14, wherein the subset ofidentified users comprises at least one of: all of the identified users,a majority of the identified users, a minority of the identified users,identified users of a particular age, and identified users of aparticular age group.
 16. The computer-implemented method of claim 14,wherein the one or more characteristics associated with the identifiedusers comprise at least one of: age of the user, education of the user,an interest of the user, language of the user, location of the user,content purchased by the user, content consumed by the user, itemspurchased by the user and a theme associated with the user.
 17. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 14, wherein the game presented inthe vehicle is modified based at least in part on at least one of: atheme related to the at least one common characteristic, a fact relatedto the at least one common characteristic, a difficulty level, apresentation format, a genre, and a gameplay type.
 18. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 14, wherein the game is presentedin the vehicle in at least one of an aural presentation format, a visualpresentation format, and a tactile presentation format.
 19. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 14, further comprising: undercontrol of the one or more computing devices configured with specificcomputer executable instructions, receiving input from the plurality ofusers in response to the game presented in the vehicle, wherein theinput received from the plurality of users is at least one of voice,touch, and gesture.
 20. A non-transitory computer-readable medium havinga computer-executable module for retrieving items of gameplay contentassociated with an in-vehicle game, the computer-executable module beingconfigured to: identify one or more users in a vehicle; determine, foreach identified user, one or more characteristics associated with theidentified user; detect, from among the one or more characteristicsassociated with each of the identified users, at least one commoncharacteristic; retrieve an item of gameplay content from an electronicdata store, the item of gameplay content retrieved based at least inpart on the at least one common characteristic; and cause presentation,to the one or more users, of the retrieved item of gameplay content. 21.The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 20, wherein theretrieved item of gameplay content is presented to at least one user viaa computing device associated with the at least one user.
 22. Thenon-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 20, wherein thecomputer-executable module is further configured to: receive input fromthe one or more users in response to the presented item of gameplaycontent, wherein the input received from the one or more users is atleast one of voice, touch, and gesture.
 23. The non-transitorycomputer-readable medium of claim 20, wherein the at least onecharacteristic comprises at least one of: age of the user, education ofthe user, an interest of the user, language of the user, location of theuser, content purchased by the user, content consumed by the user, itemspurchased by the user and a theme associated with the user.
 24. Thenon-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 20, wherein thecomputer-executable module is further configured to: modify the item ofgameplay content presented in the vehicle based at least in part on theat least one common characteristic.